RE:st: Gini coefficient of survival tables

> Date: Thu, 24 Apr 2008 11:05:58 +0200
> From: Johannes Schoder <johannes.schoder@soi.uzh.ch>
> Subject: st: Gini coefficient of survival tables
>
> Dear Stata list users,
> I am calculating the Gini coefficient of the survival tables
> for 30 OECD countries for the time period of 1960-2004 using the Human
Mortality
> Database. I take years lived (from year 0 to 110) as income and death
> numbers as population.
> Thereby I use the Stata command "ginidesc death numbers, by(year)".
> Unfortunately I receive totally different results when I
> calculate the Ginicoefficient "by feet" with Excel.
> So I am not sure if I used the command properly. Thanks a lot in
advance!
>
> Johannes
>
> P.S.:
>
> The data is having the following structure:
>
>
> Year Years lived Death Numbers
> 1960 1 3400
> 1960 2 478
> 1960 3 488
> .
> .
> .
>
>
> 1961 1 3200
> 1961 2 470
> 1961 3 472
--------------------------------------
It seems that you have grouped data, not unit-record ("micro") data. All
the Stata programs for the calculation of Gini coefficient that I am
aware of assume that you have unit-record data. So, you will
underestimate inequality if you use those programs. On the general
issues, see FA Cowell and F Mehta (1982) "The estimation and
interpolation of inequality measures", Review of Economic Studies, 49(2)
273-290, and references cited therein.
By the way, -ginidesc- is, in many ways, simply a wrapper for -ineqdeco-
(on SSC).
Stephen
-------------------------------------------------------------
Professor Stephen P. Jenkins <stephenj@essex.ac.uk>
Director, Institute for Social and Economic Research
University of Essex, Colchester CO4 3SQ, U.K.
Tel: +44 1206 873374. Fax: +44 1206 873151.
http://www.iser.essex.ac.uk
Survival Analysis using Stata:
http://www.iser.essex.ac.uk/teaching/degree/stephenj/ec968/
Downloadable papers and software: http://ideas.repec.org/e/pje7.html
Learn about the UK's new household panel survey, the United Kingdom
Household Longitudinal Study: http://www.iser.essex.ac.uk/ukhls/
Contribute to the consultation on content:
http://www.iser.essex.ac.uk/ukhls/consult/
*
* For searches and help try:
* http://www.stata.com/support/faqs/res/findit.html
* http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
* http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/